Cuenca Updates

Monday, May 21, 2012

Monday May 21, 2012

Monday May 21/12 update

Off to Spanish class this morning and we spent much of the class talking about idioms in the Spanish language versus the English language. Every language has them and they usually make little sense when literally translated. It made me smile when I recalled something my Dad said when we were driving once. There was this anorexic skinny young lady on the corner, and dad said “Elle n’a pas de graisse a vendre!” which loosely translated means “She has no fat to sell”. I have never ever heard that said by anyone else so it is a humorous remembrance of my wonderful father.

Nobody joined me for lunch at Sabor Latino today. I know that around 12:30 incoming jets usually pass almost overhead there so I was watching for one but I almost missed it as I was slurping my soup, just catching it before it went over the rooftops.

I saw a large computer software store so I poked around in there for a bit and bought 2 CD’s of photo editing software for $6.

Then I went shopping for runners. My little toes are almost popping out of my old tired runners so it is time for a change. I didn’t find the right combination at the first 6 places I stopped, hard to find a size 9 with a decent width, arch support and tread. I finally found a nice fitting pair at the San Francisco Mercado for $28 and put my elastic laces into the new pair. They are black this time, almost matching the dirty laces.

I just missed the #3 bus so I decided to head down Calle Larga and take a few shots of some of the places we keep talking about, like the Coffee Tree (where gringos gather daily), the book exchange at the Windhorse Café, and the Carolina Bookstore. I got the Chamber Of Commerce when I walked down the escalinata and across the Tomebamba, below Todos Santos church. I got a few shots of local colour before catching the #15 home. I took a couple more shots through the bus window of two entrances to the huge municipal cemetery, which I haven’t visited in ages.

Arriving in my room I could hear Tom Thumb chirping away and I barely got the window open before he was hovering in front of me, waiting, so I just held out the feeder and up he came to feed right from my hand. He has since done it five more times when I have opened the window at his urging. He’s getting to be as spoiled as our two boys. I am beginning to talk to him while he is feeding so maybe he will recognize my voice and I can call when his lunch is ready, lol.

Bella’s Mom just called and Bella’s brother Laurier has had a heart episode while camping in Duncan so he is due for an angioplasty very quickly and then should be good as new. A little prayer won’t hurt please.

Enjoy the pics. That was today’s excitement. Hugs to all.

120521 Broken Bridge in 60's flood

120521 Carolina Bookstore

120521 Cemetario entrance 2

120521 Cemetario main entrance

120521 Chamber Of Commerce building

120521 Coffee Tree restaurant on Calle Larga

120521 LAN jet flying over Calle Larga

120521 Statue of Herrera in a park

120521 Street scene to south

120521 San Francisco church

120521 San Francisco steeple

120521 Swooning Tree

120521 Todos Santos church

120521 Windhorse Cafe/Book Exchange place

Sunday, May 20, 2012

Sunday May 20, 2012

Sunday May 20/12 update

I just had the best rest I have had in Cuenca, to bed at 1am and didn’t stir until 9:30am. Exhaustion had taken over and this old body needed a recharge. I have to finish this blog which will take a lot of time because of all the videos to be uploaded to YouTube.

I responded to an ad on GringoTree for a fellow who needs some urgent help getting to know how to get around Cuenca. He probably got a lot of responses as the expat community here is generally very helpful as I did not get a response from him.

I haven’t heard from my little language buddy Juan in a while so I called him and left a message. Bella wants to have a day of rest and relaxation and doesn’t want to go out walking. So off I went to El Centro via the Rotary Market and it was actually pretty quiet everywhere but there were lots of Gringos roaming around.

At the side of Immaculate Conception I met a couple that we had briefly spoken to Friday night at the California Kitchen, he’s English and she is American (but she has picked up his accent) and they reside in North Carolina. They are new here and checking out our fair city so I took the to the iTur office to show them where to get the bus route booklet and to show them on the map on the wall where most things are. Then they asked for my information and Cuenca Residency blog site which I freely gave them.

Then I walked along a path above the river between downtown and Otorongo Market to the west and again things were very quiet. I saw this young lady taking many, many photographs of real graffiti on walls, etc. She has been here a year and is from South Dakota.

Then I walked back on the south side of the river, always seeing a nice view of Todos Santos bathed in the sunlight. We had some really threatening clouds go by but only felt 3-4 drops all day. There are some real interesting buildings towering above the Tomebamba.

I continued on up the Parque De La Madre to see some of the finished graffiti on the plywood wall. Some artists were still at work on them and I was blown away by some of the intricacy of many of them. Even though I will be there in the morning for Spanish class I thought I had better get some shots of them while I had nice weather. Again I ran into a foursome from Texas who were also checking out the country.

Tom Thumb is usually right at my window as soon as I open it so I managed to get a few more decent shots this morning and this afternoon.

Enjoy the many pics. That was today’s excitement. Hugs to all.

I apologize but this blog is driving me nuts today with the photo placements so please forgive the jumble all over.